


Masks

by shadowsong26



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Gen, In Spite of a Nail AU, Near-Canon AU, OFC - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-16
Updated: 2016-12-15
Packaged: 2018-09-08 21:02:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8861935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowsong26/pseuds/shadowsong26
Summary: A near-canon AU in which Emperor Palpatine has a daughter.





	

**Author's Note:**

> **Notes:** This is what I like to call an ‘In Spite of a Nail’ AU. The general concept is: Palpatine has a daughter, born about three years after he declares himself Emperor. The plot, however, will stay pretty close to canon, and follow events in the Imperial Court. This story takes place during the OT timeframe, starting with the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Yavin.
> 
> **Special Note on Canon:** As those of you who follow _Precipice_ may know, I haven’t seen _Rebels._ I don’t know how relevant that will be, as this story begins place several years later, but I may accidentally contradict backstory established there. I'm also posting this now to sort of informally lock my canon before _Rogue One_ comes out, but I may adjust some things after seeing the movie. Also, while I have material in this AU planned up through the events of The Force Awakens that do not directly contradict what is shown onscreen in any of the movies, my road there is going to be somewhat different, as I haven’t read most of the tie-in material for the movie and Lavinia has her own plans that are likely to impact events to some degree. It is my intention, however (as this is an In Spite of a Nail AU) to get to roughly the same place eventually.
> 
> As a note, I will also be drawing in certain details and/or characters from Legends/the old EU as suit the needs of the story. I will do my best to make sure none of what I include contradicts established canon (again, barring Rebels and details presented in the Force Awakens tie-in materials), and that things within the fic itself remain internally consistent.

Emperor Palpatine’s hands curved into claws around the arms of his throne as he considered the child kneeling before him.

_His_ child.

He had toyed with the idea of having one off and on for years, mostly before revealing himself and instituting the New Order. Progeny had their uses--a natural sense of duty and loyalty, a certain level of camouflage that could have proved useful at times, a symbolic extension of himself.

Not that he ever intended for her to be anything more than a symbol, of course.

But the potential benefits had never quite outweighed the inconveniences. And, once he had claimed the galaxy, the plan had become substantially less valuable for a time. He no longer had any need of camouflage, after all, and he had enough ambitious minions to wrangle without adding one positioned quite so well as his own child.

Still, having her had been more beneficial than not, in the end. There were places the girl could go where he could not, people and information she could access that he could not. And, particularly since most of his chief minions were male, she made very effective bait.

She was sixteen now; poised and intelligent. Strong with the Force, of course, though he had carefully limited her training. She had something of a talent for wrangling the Senate, in ways he had neither the persona nor the patience to bother with--manipulating tensions between members or factions to either defuse or escalate them, depending on the situation. Now that he had _finally_ rid himself of that antiquated mass of useless quibblers, he suspected he would find similar use for her among the Moffs and the High Command. She was diplomatic and knew how to present herself to be underestimated, without destroying any natural credibility she had. She knew how to dangle people seeking to exploit her to gain his favor--as if he would ever be sentimental enough to take her recommendations simply because they came from her.

And, naturally, she always reported anything she learned to him. He considered her loyalty as absolute as he considered anyone’s; and, of course, he would see any attempted betrayal from her long before it became any kind of actual _threat._

He had had plans for her; long-range plans. Unfortunately, the fiasco at Yavin had forced him to reassess. Now that she was sixteen, he had intended for her to go to Tarkin; officially as a sign of favor, and a reward for completing the Death Star, but in truth to keep an eye on him. Ensure his ambitions remained within the appropriate boundaries.

But Tarkin had died with the project, and already opportunists were sniffing at her heels. He would have to find another resolution to that particular problem.

First, though, he felt his child was ready for a test outside the relatively contained world of the court and the Senate. And, as a side benefit, how she handled herself would, in all likelihood, narrow down said resolutions to the correct choice.

“I have a task for you,” he said.

She remained kneeling, perfectly still, head tilted downward at an exactly correct angle of deference. She was _always_ exactly correct in her outward behavior. Perhaps she assumed that meant he wouldn’t look too deeply below the surface. As if he could ever be so complacent. “Yes, Father.”

“I have received intelligence that a freelance agent in the Outer Rim has acquired intercepted Rebel comm traffic, some from Yavin. You will retrieve this data and bring it to me.”

“Yes, Father,” she said. “Shall I steal it, or negotiate?”

Ah, yes, he recalled--she had made something of a hobby of slicing into classified archives to which he had refused her access. Amusing, that she thought he didn’t know. Still, he appreciated a certain level of creativity in his assets, and she never pushed past what he could tolerate.

He flicked through her surface thoughts, then burrowed past her first shield, for the basic information she expected him to find; and the second, to the information she wanted him to think she was keeping from him; and finally the third, which hid the thoughts she _truly_ wanted kept to herself.

Nothing of note, nothing unexpected. Wariness, anticipation, a hint of her own ambition.

“Negotiate,” he said. “We may yet exploit this source at some future date.” Of course, if her negotiations failed, she would have to steal the data. She knew that, and he knew that she knew that, but it was best to keep his options open if possible. Resorting to theft would not be a _failure,_ but it would certainly be...disappointing. That knowledge would serve to motivate her, he was sure.

“Yes, Father,” she said for the third time.

“Lord Vader will accompany you,” he informed her. He had several reasons for that, including the fact that he was not best pleased with how his apprentice had handled his role in the Yavin fiasco. Still, the blame was largely Tarkin’s. Vader had merely failed to properly clean up the Grand Moff’s mess. Assigning him a boring escort duty he would chafe at would suffice to keep him in his place. For now.

He felt a faint start of surprise and apprehension bleed through his daughter’s shields. Which was another reason for the assignment; the two of them had never worked together directly before. Part of that was simply that he had different uses for them, and there had never been a reason. Part of that was because the damage the two of them could do, should they choose to conspire together, was considerable.

But he thought that unlikely, at this point; and the galactic landscape he had so carefully cultivated had _changed,_ since Yavin. He would need them to cooperate in the future. This would serve as a decent test run. Besides, each was best suited to monitor the other’s behavior for anything he might disapprove. And, powerful as he was, he could not be everywhere and the two of them were, at least to external eyes, his most valuable assets.

Vader, when Palpatine had given him the same assignment that morning, had been mostly irritated. He had read between the lines, of course, and knew more or less what it meant. Or, at least, the parts Palpatine wanted him to know.

The child finally got her reaction under control and found her voice. “When and where shall I meet him, Father?”

“The main palace hangar, in two hours. He will be expecting you.”

She read that for the dismissal it was, and bowed. “I will return soon, with the data.”

“See that you do,” he said, and turned his attention to other matters as his daughter rose with impeccable grace and left his presence.


End file.
